Epoxides have gained wide acceptance in protective coatings in electrical and structural applications due to their exceptional combination of properties such as toughness, adhesion, chemical resistance, and superior electrical properties.
Epoxides may be cured by ultraviolet (UV) light or thermally. UV cure involves the use of a photoinitiator with the epoxide. When this system is radiated with ultraviolet light, the formulation is cured into a coating. Such a coating has an acceptable balance of properties. However, there is a desire to enhance selected properties of coatings based on epoxides.
Polyols are often combined with the epoxides in such systems to improve their properties. For example, when the polyols are of sufficient molecular weight, the flexibility of the epoxide coating is improved. However, such systems may not have good moisture resistance which makes them unsuitable for use in certain cured systems, i.e., coatings where such moisture resistance is required.